Bungo Stray Dogs Episode 13 Review:
I’ll say it up front, this episode was amazing. I loved every second of it and was just completely immersed in the story in a way Bungo has utterly failed at doing ever since the first five minutes of episode 1. The problem becomes this: why is this episode and this story so much better than the 11 and a 1/2 episodes of season 1?
Dazai is the prominent character this episode (or at least the prominent character that we new anything about prior to this episode) as we go back to his Port Mafia days and while he is still suicidal and over the top, all of that is actually muted by the hostile world he is and the dead-pan delivery of lines given by the supporting cast. His character ceases to be an aggravation who is occasionally funny and actually works as a functionally quirky character. Watching him and Oda (another Mafia member) this episode was a really entertaining and rewarding experience.
Bungo has kind of done it now. It’s kind of clear we’ll eventually go back to the crew from season one and they just weren’t as interesting as what was presented in this episode. That means the show is either going to have to lift the overall standard or viewers are going to note an obvious drop in the quality of the story and characterisation this season.
Bungo Stray Dogs is available on Crunchyroll.
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Karandi James
Who’d have thought, given the fluctuating quality of the first season, that the second would deliver an opener with such strength of storytelling, direction and characterisation.
Given the gruffer supporting characters, Dazai comes into his element, and is not only tolerable but thoroughly engaging. More like that please.
I really hope that the bulk of this season remains in this kind of flashback/prequel territory. It’d be criminal to return to its old ways now it has revealed just what the show can accomplish. But there may be some more surprises in store…
Yeah, Dazai was bit much to take after the first episode in the first season but that’s because every character was so energetic and crazy. In this setting he kind of comes of a quirky but he’s really, really interesting. Definitely an order for more like this.
I remember being left feeling indifferent by the first season, or first half, yet this posts definitely will lead me to giving it another chance. The first episode had me hooked on the show, but then it just became like a weird cousin to Kekkai Sensen with less interesting characters and dialog… To me anyway.
I will give Bungou Stray Dogs another chance then if it seems to have gotten interesting its first episode back. Will this become the Bersaria addition of this series though?
I’m kind of feeling like we have to go back to where season 1 fnished which would kind of mean things are going to go back to how they were. I guess we’ll find out in another couple of episodes.
im pretty sure it’s better because atsushi isnt in it
That definitely helped. Not that I dislike Atsushi but he doesn’t allow for any kind of serious storytelling around him.